Mozart’s early works were already a testament to his unbridled musical talent, with Ascanio in Alba being particularly notable. This piece was composed at the request of the Imperial Court of Vienna in 1771 to celebrate Archduke Ferdinand’s wedding to the Princess of Modena. Although it was meant as a little musical appetizer for Johann Adolph Hasse's opera seria Ruggerio, it was really the showstopper. The fifteen-year-old composer won over audiences with this short pastoral work, featuring the virtuosic arias and shimmering instrumental motifs that later became hallmarks of Mozart’s operatic writing.
As a traditional serenata, Ascanio in Alba - an ode to love and the virtues of marriage - follows Ascanio (Sonia Prina), the grandson of the goddess Venus (Iris Kupke), in his quest for true love. As the future lord of the city of Alba and promised to the nymph Sylvia, Ascanio sets off for the city, eager to meet his mysterious bride, but Venus unexpectedly advises him to hide his identity in order to test his fiancée's virtue. Ascanio finally arrives in Alba in disguise, and shortly after spots Sylvia (Marie-Belle Sandis), with the old priest Aceste (Charles Reid), in the middle of a group of shepherds led by the young Fauno (Diana Damrau). At first sight, the young man falls madly in love and yearns to reveal himself, but his grandmother urges him to remain hidden. Fauno offers to attend the young woman's wedding. Despite being in love with the tantalizing Ascanio she had often dreamed about, Sylvia realizes that she is not promised to him and flees into the woods, devastated. Suddenly Venus appears and reveals their deception to Sylvia, and entrusts Alba’s prosperity to the good care of the lovers.
Featuring as part of the Salzburg Festival, the Landestheater welcomes David Hermann's distinctive, modern, and poetic staging of a German adaptation of Giuseppe Parini's famous libretto. A word of advice: keep your eyes peeled! Some of the most beautiful rococo paintings of the 18th century take shape in his hypnotic staging…
Photo © Hans Jörg Michel
